The Warmth of Home
by afinepricklypear
Summary: When middle-school aged Yata Misaki's parents die in a tragic accident, he's forced to quit school and take up part-time jobs to support his younger siblings. Four years later, he thinks his life might finally get better when he's offered a housekeeping position for a wealthy family. At the Fushimi Estate, hardly anyone is ever home. At least, that's what Yata is told. (AU)
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Warmth of Home

Summary: (AU) In a world without Kings and Clans, middle-school aged Yata Misaki's parents died in a tragic accident. He's forced to quit school and take up part-time jobs to support his younger siblings. Four years later, he thinks his life might get better when he's offered a decent paying housekeeping position for a wealthy family. The Fushimi Estate is large and mostly empty. Hardly anyone is ever home between the lady of house traveling the world for business, her husband gallivanting about for fun, and their teenage son living in dorms at Ashinaka High School. At least, that's what Yata is told.

Notes: For now, I'm going to give this story a T rating, but I might consider raising it in later chapters for mentions of abuse, depression, non-con, and other things I'm not thinking of at the moment. There won't be anything graphic though. I want to try fitting in as many of the K Project characters as I can, but no guarantees they'll all make an appearance, but because this story is centered on Yata and Fushimi, guarantee that prominent members of HOMRA and Scepter 4 will be playing large roles in the story. Story is being cross-posted to AO3.

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**Chapter 1:**

Dawn rose over the Yata household but it wasn't enough to stir the oldest child, Yata Misaki, from his blissful dreams of being a skateboarding champion worshipped by the entire world. His alarm blaring rock music at his ear wasn't enough either. Nor was his screaming baby sister downstairs or his toddler aged little brother banging toys together. It wasn't until his mother burst through his door and dumped water on his face that he bolted upright in bed.

"What the hell…" he sputtered.

"Watch your language, young man," his mother boomed, "And get your butt out of bed! I've been calling for you to come down and help with the little ones for the past half hour."

"Ugh…but mom," Misaki protested. His mother looked around his room with disgust. There was a stack of scattered notebooks in the center of the floor topped with a video game, a pile of dirty laundry, a towel spread out to one side of the room with a skateboard missing two wheels and tiny repair parts laid on top.

"Look at this disaster!" his mother tapped her foot on the ground and glared at him, "I told you to clean this place yesterday. What happened?"

"I…I was working on homework," Misaki lied. His mother raised a brow at him. "Some of its Minoru's mess!"

It was true that the toys splayed out in the left corner of the room belonged to the younger Yata brother. His mother noted it, wrinkling her nose as she plucked up a plastic dinosaur sticky with some sweet-smelling gunk.

"Minoru is three years old and you are twelve! You have to be more responsible than a three-year-old, Misaki," she screamed, "I need your help looking after them, but I spend more time looking after you!"

"That's not fair. Why do I have to be responsible for them? We're not even completely related, can't _their_ dad help," Misaki complained. He knew it was the wrong thing to say the moment his mother's face turned white and her expression looked like she'd been punched in the gut.

"Get out of bed and get ready for school," she said between clenched teeth and marched from the room.

Misaki fell back into bed, arm across his face. He groaned. Things were so much easier when it was just him and his mom. They had a good rhythm, they could count on each other, and they were one another's entire world. Then that guy came along, and sure, Misaki was glad that his mom was happy but he didn't have a place in that man's world like his mom did, and then Minoru was born and she had less time for Misaki. Once the baby, Megumi, came, they're family was complete and Misaki was the awkward growth on the side. He tossed the covers away and searched for his school uniform amongst the piles.

Downstairs, his mother was attempting to feed the baby and pack their school lunches at the same time. Minoru was wearing his empty food bowl as a hat.

"We'll be gone when you get back from school. Miss Tegui is going to watch Megumi until you get home. You'll be okay to pick Minoru up? You remember which class is his?" Misaki's mom said. She had her back to Misaki and her voice stiff.

"Ah…oh…why am I…?" Misaki mumbled, scratching the back of his head.

"You're unbelievable. You forgot?" his mom gave a disappointed sigh, "Of course you forgot. Your step-father has that business in the countryside. We're only going to be gone for the one night. We'll be back in the morning."

"I don't want Misaki! I want mommy," Minoru cried.

"Oh, don't cry, my little dumpling, it's only going to be for today," Misaki's mom soothed, crossing over to take the bowl off the top of Minoru's head. Misaki made a face at the smaller boy. She put a hand on her hip and gave Misaki a skeptical once over. "Can I actually trust you to do this?"

"Wh-what? Yeah, I'll be fine."

"I'm serious, Misaki. I've got too many children in the house, right now, and between getting in fights at school, bringing home bad grades, and not helping with any of the chores, you're the worst. I need you to start acting your age," Misaki's mother paused and bit her lower lip, "About what you said, upstairs…I wish you wouldn't feel that way…they are your brother and sister, and they need to know they can rely on you…"

"It's one day, right? Why are you making such a big fuss," Misaki scowled, "All I gotta do is feed them dinner and put them to bed. How hard can that be?"

"Breakfast in the morning, also. Watch them, you can't take your eyes off them. And make sure to give them both baths, and brush their teeth too. Help Minoru with his homework, make sure he takes his asthma medicine," she crossed to the refrigerator and tapped her finger on a sheet of paper with a list of things to do written in her neat hand, "I made a note in case you forget anything. But your step-father will have his PDA, so call us if you need anything."

Misaki rolled his eyes. "Right, whatever. I'm leaving first."

"Wait, Misaki, don't forget your lunch," his mom grabbed a bento box that she hadn't yet wrapped up, scrambling to put the furoshiki around it.

"Forget it, I'll just get something from the convenience store on the way," Misaki insisted, his cheeks growing warm as he hurried for the exit. His mom still packed him cute bento boxes like a little kid, punching out shapes from the vegetables and arranging them into cartoon characters. The other students at school poked fun of him for it.

"Oh, but wait, Misaki, be good…"

He shut the door on her last words, wishing he'd had the chance to finish repairs on his skateboard the night before. He'd gotten distracted, as usual, by his bratty little brother – _half_-brother – stealing the parts and losing them around the room. Misaki had given up when Minoru lost one of the wheels, and their mother came up to separate them after Misaki started shouting while Minoru cried. Now he had to walk the whole way to school and he was already running late.

…

There were still five minutes to the first bell when Misaki found his three friends crouched behind the school bleachers. They were huddled together and speaking in low whispers when he approached. He grinned and, they startled when he yelled, "There you guys are, I've been looking everywhere!"

"Oh great, he found us," Hiroshi mumbled, as they each rose to their feet and faced him. Hiroshi, Kenichi, and Tatsuda were all taller than Misaki and not especially creative when it came to games, but Misaki didn't mind. His family had moved to the region at the beginning of the school year, to be nearer to his step-father's workplace, and these had been the three Misaki chose as friends. They had gone to the same elementary school together, so they had known one another for a few years before Misaki came along and took them under his wing.

"Sorry I'm so late," Misaki laughed, rubbing the back of his head and ruffling the light auburn colored strands, "We still have time to play Battle Game, though. Yata-Team Assemble!"

As though on queue, the bell rang overhead, and the boys exchanged looks.

"Guess not," Kenichi muttered. They brushed past a crestfallen Misaki, heading towards the school.

"Oh…lunchtime, then," Misaki declared, hurrying to catch up.

In the hall outside of class, the students were gathered around. Their grades had been posted for the mid-semester exams. Misaki hung back, eying the board warily with a lurch in his stomach. He knew he hadn't done well. Even with every intention in the world to study, he couldn't make sense of his notes. He'd decided to take a break from deciphering them and play a video game, but ended up stuck on a difficult dungeon and, knowing he wouldn't be able to concentrate on schoolwork until he finished it, he kept at the game. It took him the entire night to complete the dungeon, and by then, there was no more time to study.

Hiroshi and the others moved through the crowd to get a look at the board, and curious where they placed, Misaki swallowed down his pride and followed. He glanced the bottom of the list but didn't see his name. A small bit of hope leaped in his chest. Did he place closer to the middle?

"That guy is first again," some of the students were complaining, "He hardly ever shows up for class. How does he always top first?"

Misaki's eyes trailed up to the first-place name on the list and conjured an image of the gloomy looking boy with black-rimmed glasses that sat in the back of class. Misaki skimmed the rest of the list for his friends or even his own name. His brow wrinkled.

"Did I miss them…?" he started looking at the bottom and moving towards the top this time, not noticing as the crowd began to disperse for their rooms, until he began to exclaim, "Hey I don't see our names…" and found he was speaking to an empty hall.

The second bell rang overhead, and Misaki winced. He was late for class. Again. He attempted turning and running at the same time, only to slam head first into the back of a taller figure. They both crashed to the floor. Stunned, Misaki rubbed the sore spot on his forehead where he'd connected, before his eyes snapped open and he realized he was seated atop another boy. He scrambled back to his feet, extending a hand.

"So-so-sorry! I didn't see you," Misaki said, "Are you hurt? I can take you to the nurse if you're hurt!"

The other boy regarded Misaki's hand with a cold stare, ignoring it. He found his glasses – which had been knocked off in the collision – and repositioned them on his face. He picked himself off the ground and gathered his things.

"Ah…Fushimi Saruhiko, right? Congratulations on taking first," Misaki tried again, "You take first all the time, huh? That's really impressive!"

There was a flash of dark colored eyes on Misaki, swirling with a strange look of confusion, before flickering to the board of exam grades behind him. The boy gave a sharp click of his tongue and wordlessly moved towards their classroom. Misaki blinked a few times, watching the boy disappear into the room, heart racing and cheeks flush with color. He wasn't sure how to feel, angry or annoyed.

"What a complicated guy," Misaki grumbled, and then, eyes widening, remembered himself, "I'm late!"

Inside of the room, Misaki was surprised to find class hadn't yet begun. The students were all laughing and joking with one another. Misaki's eyes found Fushimi Saruhiko settling into his seat at the back of the room and he flustered again. _Jerk_. He found his friends next, standing at the teacher's desk with their heads lowered. The teacher noticed Misaki standing in the doorframe.

"Yata Misaki," the teacher boomed, and Misaki couldn't help noticing that Fushimi guy turning to look at him, "Over here. Now."

"Ah…oh yeah, sorry I'm late," Misaki said, wandering towards the teacher's desk, "I got caught up looking for my exam grade. Hey, it wasn't on the list. Was there a misprint or…?"

"Drop it already, Mister Yata, your friends have already confessed. They've told me everything," the teacher placed his hands on his hips and glared down his nose at Misaki. Misaki looked to the three other boys in surprise. What was there to confess? Did they know he'd spent the entire night before the exam stuck on a dungeon level instead of studying? "I knew something was up when these three all got the same exact answers on the exams."

"Same answers…" Misaki wrinkled his brow and tipped his head to one side, puzzling over the words. Maybe they all studied together? He wondered why they hadn't asked him, but brushed the thought away as soon as it popped up. Of course, they looked up to him, they must not have realized he would need study time too.

"They somehow obtained an answer key and cheated. I figured it had to be you, useless delinquent. They never would've done something like this before you came to the school," the teacher seethed, "You may as well admit it."

"Cheated," Misaki repeated numbly. His arms and legs felt leaden "…but my test answers were…"

"You think you're clever, forcing them to use the stolen answer key and not using it yourself," the teacher roared, folding his arms over his chest, "They already explained everything. That you were the one who stole it and you threatened them to make them use it on the test. There's no point in lying, I already knew it was you anyhow."

Misaki looked to his friends, carefully avoiding his eyes. He frowned. They really needed him to help them out here, he realized. They were relying on him. It didn't matter if he denied things anyways, it seemed the teacher had already decided his guilt. Regardless, he was always in trouble with little hope of getting into high school, it wouldn't be a big deal if he took the blame. His friends would suffer more than him, otherwise, and, after all, good friends protected one another. He took a deep breath and nodded.

"Okay…it was me," Misaki mumbled. The three boys beside him looked up in surprise. He shrugged and sighed, "I got the answer key and thought it would be cool if we all used it but lost my nerve during the exam."

"You'll all receive zeroes for the exam. Yata, you'll serve clean-up duties for the rest of the semester," the teacher declared, "And I will be calling your parents."

Misaki's mouth twitched into a small frown as he recalled his mother's lecture that morning. They all shuffled to their seats.

…

By lunch, Misaki's stomach was growling. In his rush to get out of the house, he'd skipped breakfast and forgotten to grab his wallet. Misaki wondered if he could ask one of his friends to lend him money. They'd been distant since the morning talk with the teacher, but he was sure they'd want to thank him for his help, by sharing parts of their lunch with him.

The class had split up to work on a new assignment, but Misaki hadn't paid much attention to what they were doing. He had remained sitting at his desk staring out the window, watching a flock of birds fly by instead. Now he had no idea where his friends had taken off to, but he was sure they'd come back to the classroom to find him.

"You're rather unconcerned for someone who just received a zero on mid-semester exams," said a dull voice behind him.

Misaki startled, turned to stare blankly at the only other person in their corner of the room. From the look of Fushimi Saruhiko, Misaki might've sworn he was hearing voices, because there was no way that boy had made a comment to him. Fushimi was messing around on his PDA, punching away at the keys while colorful images flashed on the screen and reflected off his glasses. His expression was bored, he didn't even look interested in the game that he was playing. There was an unopened energy bar and carbonated juice on the desk in front of him. Misaki's stomach lurched, reminding him that he didn't have anything to eat.

"Ah…are you…" Misaki glanced around the room once, and gaped at Fushimi, "Are you talking to me?"

Fushimi clicked his tongue at something on the PDA screen and set it down. He turned his eyes up to meet Misaki's and a shiver raced up Misaki's spine. He'd never seen someone look so intense.

"Is there anyone else here that was given a zero for cheating?" Fushimi replied.

"Oh, yeah, that," Misaki ran a hand over the back of his neck sheepishly, "My friends and I…"

"Your friends?" Fushimi repeated coolly, some kind of emotion passing over his eyes that was dark and chaotic, frightening and calming, all at once. Misaki was forced to drop his focus on his hands, his cheeks were hot with color.

"Yeah, my friends…they were…"

"What friends?"

"Hiroshi and the others," Misaki snapped, growing impatient, "They're my friends and…"

"Then why are you alone at lunch? Where are they?" Fushimi continued. He'd picked his PDA back up, as though he'd lost interest in the conversation that he'd started.

"I…I don't…" Misaki glanced around the room. A few of the students were looking at him and whispering, they turned away quickly when his eyes swept over them. His eyes fell on a familiar object. He crossed over a couple desks to pick it up. "They're probably looking for me. This is Tatsuda's PDA. I'll use it to call them."

"Are you sure you should do that?" Fushimi mused. He'd put his own PDA down again and was watching Misaki with a new sparkle of interest in his eyes.

"Of course, he won't mind. We're friends. Friends lend each other things like this all the time," Misaki explained, opening the main screen of the PDA. Tatsuda had left a messaging app open and Misaki's brow wrinkled when he caught his name in the jumble of letters. He vaguely noticed that Fushimi had come to stand at his shoulder as he caught a few of the things written about him. It appeared to be a chatroom with Hiroshi, Kenichi, Tatsuda, and a couple others that Misaki from another class that he didn't know.

_Hiroshi: That Yata Misaki is so annoying. He's such a show off._

_Awagawa: I can't believe he covered for you guys this morning._

_Tatsuda: He did it for praise. He's pathetic._

_Kenichi: We should hide in the library at lunch. He definitely won't find us there._

"Message app, huh? What's wrong?" Fushimi said at Misaki's ear, close enough that Misaki could feel the other boy's breath on his neck. Misaki closed out of the PDA and clutched it against his chest as though to hide the already blackened screen. His cheeks and eyes were burning, he was having trouble seeing. "They were talking about you, weren't they?"

"N-n-no. No, they weren't. That's not it," Misaki blinked a few times to clear his eyes.

"You didn't even know they were cheating on the exam. They set you up to take the fall," Fushimi continued. Something about the way he said it felt like a knife twisting in Misaki's gut.

"You don't know what you're talking about," Misaki stammered, hurrying from the room, "I remembered…that's it…I remembered just now that w-we were meeting…somewhere…is all. They're waiting for me, I should go."

Misaki slammed into one of the bathroom stalls and locked the door firm behind him. He felt like he might throw up, tears were already forming in his eyes. He realized he still had the PDA in his hand, and with a sick kind of interest he wondered what the rest of the messages said about him. He dropped the toilet lid closed and plopped down on it, drawing his knees up to his chest. He chewed on his thumbnail and stared at the blank, black screen of the PDA. With trembling fingers, he opened it back up. He scrolled through the messages, until the cruel words about him became a blur.

_Childish…loser…thinks he's some leader…obnoxious…loud-mouth…short-tempered…pint-sized brat…_

By the time the bell ending lunch rang, Misaki's hunger had subsided into a distant pang barely notable over the strained throb of his heartbeat. This was how they'd felt all along. They hated him and, oblivious, he'd continued to force himself on them. He really was a terrible person. He didn't know if he could muster the will to go back to the class and face any of them. Maybe he could apologize, he thought, make them understand that he hadn't meant to hurt them. Maybe they'd forgive him, if he just explained it to them. It was all a misunderstanding; he wasn't this hateful person. If he talked to them about it, he could make them see.

A new message popped up in the chat from Hiroshi: _Have any of you seen Tatsuda's PDA?_

Misaki stepped out of the bathroom and, with eyes downcast, entered the classroom. Everyone's eyes were on him, he was late and the teacher was saying something about it, but he couldn't lift his gaze. This was the worst feeling in the world, he was certain of it. There was nothing that could be worse than this. He moved slowly back and wordlessly placed Tatsuda's PDA on his desk in passing. He took his seat and lay his head in his folded arms.

The teacher resumed the lesson, the lecture and whispers of his fellow students merging into a buzzing in the background. He just wanted to fade away, disappear back to the place where he and his mom had each other, and he knew who his friends were at school, and everyone liked him. Why did she have to marry that man and have his children? Why couldn't he have been enough? Now he didn't have anywhere to belong or anyone that liked him. It was all their fault. That man and his children. They took his mom away and left him with nothing.

It took him several moments to realize the teacher was calling his name. He lifted his eyes up to barely see over his folded arms. There was a person standing at the front of the room with the teacher, and the teacher had a slip of paper in his hand. Everyone was staring at Misaki. He wondered what they could possibly want from him now. The clock hanging at the front of the room indicated the school day was close to over.

"Yata Misaki," the teacher repeated once more, impatience straining his voice, "Get to the front of class, now. They want you at the front office."

"Ah…oh…" Misaki stood up and started towards the person by his teacher. A middle-aged woman with her hair twisted into a bun on top of her head. He recognized her as the principle's secretary.

"You'll need to bring your things," the woman said. The other students were whispering around him.

"…what did he do this time?"

"…he's such a delinquent…"

"…why doesn't he drop out already, no one even wants him here…"

Misaki nodded slowly. He turned to pick his back up, catching a glimpse of dark, intense eyes, silently watching him, and his heart tripped over its next beat. He gathered his bookbag and continued to the front of the room.

"What is it that the principle wants?" Misaki asked, trying to sound confident despite the slight hitch in his words.

The woman's eyes darted from Misaki to the rest of the class. She tried to keep her voice low as she answered, but the students at the front could hear, "It's not the principle. There are police here for you."

Misaki paled considerably. His stomach dropping out beneath him. What had he done?

Once the door closed behind them, the classroom erupted into excited whispers. He tried to ignore it, as he followed the woman back to the principle's office. Fear stagnating his movements, spreading through his chest, as he ran though his mind all the things he'd done lately. Nothing that he could remember would require the police to show up, but as promised, there were officers waiting in the principle's office when they arrived.

"If…if this is about the fence I broke at Mister Shio's place, it was an accident, my skateboard got out from under me, and I already told that old man I'd fix it!" Misaki blurted out, "And…and I didn't have anything to do with the spray paint disappearing from the maintenance shed outside…everyone thinks it was me, but I really didn't…and…and…"

"Young man, calm down, we're not here for anything you did," one of the officers said, raising his voice to be heard over Misaki's nervous ramblings.

Misaki fell silent, his brow drawing together in confusion, "You aren't? Then…why?"

The other officer looked away, and the first took his hat off his head and lowered his eyes as he spoke.

"It's about your parents…"


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Ah...this fandom is pretty dead, huh? Oh well, there seem to be a couple readers, at least. Here's the next chapter. Shorter than the first, they were originally meant to be one. Enjoy.

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Chapter 2:

_It was quick_.

The words stuck in Misaki's mind, even as everything else faded into nothing but a high-pitched ringing. They were meant to be a comfort, to assure him that his mother and step-father hadn't suffered painfully in their final moments. All he could think of it though was how one second they were there and the next they weren't.

Quick.

No chance to say good-bye.

No chance to give last words of wisdom.

No chance to see their children one last time.

One second there, the next gone.

It was quick.

The officers explained that they would escort Misaki home and go over the next steps with him. He trailed after them out the front of the school towards their marked vehicle. They opened the door for him and he fell into the backseat. It reeked of sweat and mildew.

"Minoru," he murmured, when the officer in the driver seat started the car. The two men up front paused and looked back at him.

"What's that?"

"My little brother. Minoru. I'm supposed to pick him up after school today," Misaki felt exhausted just getting those words out.

The officers agreed that they could stop on the way. It was only a few minutes' drive to Minoru's elementary school. One of the officer's said he would go in to retrieve the younger Yata brother.

"Do you know which class he's in?"

Misaki opened his mouth to answer and frowned, shaking his head, a heavy weight settling over him. He'd never really committed it to memory, no matter how many times his mother asked him to go pick the younger boy up.

"I'll figure it out," the officer said and disappeared from the car.

The other officer turned in his seat to look at Misaki, "Are there any other siblings that we need to get?"

Misaki shook his head slowly. The officer sighed and turned back around in his seat. They waited in silence for the other officer to return with a teacher leading Minoru by the hand. He looked uncertain until he saw Misaki. He climbed eagerly up into the backseat and on top of Misaki's lap. Misaki groaned but didn't say anything. His words caught in his throat when the little boy grinned and declared, "We're taking a ride in a cop car!"

Reaching home, they found the baby inside with Miss Tegui, the elderly woman who lived next door, as Misaki's mother had promised. She didn't look surprised when Misaki and Minoru came through the door with two police officers in tow, and when her soft, sympathetic eyes found Misaki's, tears began to stream down her wrinkled cheeks. He passed Minoru off on to her and wandered into the kitchen.

"Is there any next of kin that we can contact for you?" the officers asked. Somewhere in the back of Misaki's mind, a tiny warning bell rang. They meant adults. Someone to come watch the small children. Miss Tegui had her lips pressed together into a thin line, her eyes were wide.

"No," Misaki mumbled. His didn't have any relatives on his mother's side and he knew nothing of his father's side. As for his step-father's parents, they had disowned their son when he married Misaki's mother. He wouldn't even know how to contact them if he wanted to. He swallowed down his emotions and lied. "No…I'll do it."

"You'll need to come down to the station to fill out forms and claim the bodies. I'll write the address down for you," one of the officers pulled out a pad of paper and started jotting things down. Miss Tegui stood silently by holding Minoru's hand. The officer ripped the paper from his pad and held it out to Misaki. Shaking, Misaki reached out to take it.

"Thank you," he said, the words felt like cotton in his mouth.

"I'm sorry for your loss," the men both murmured before leaving the house.

"You don't have any next of kin. I know. Your mother told me your family situation," Miss Tegui said as soon as the officers were gone, "Do you know what happens if they find out?"

Misaki gripped the edge of the counter to keep him steady on his feet.

"They'll take the babies from you. Separate all of you. You'll never see your brother and sister again," Miss Tegui continued. "You can't let that happen. What are you going to do?"

Misaki chewed his bottom lip, whispering, "I don't want to think about this right now."

"You have to think about it. They're your responsibility," Miss Tegui insisted. Minoru was squirming in her grip.

"I want to play a game," Minoru announced, "Misaki let me play the game."

"Not now," Misaki said.

"You lied to those officers, so you know what you have to do. I'll help you out as much as I can, but I'm on a fixed income and it's just me since my husband passed," Miss Tegui continued.

"But Misaki, please!" Minoru cried. The baby began to fuss in her high chair. The room was spinning and Misaki couldn't get a grip. It was all slipping out from under him.

"I said not now," Misaki screamed, slamming the counter with a fist.

Everyone fell silent except the baby who began screaming at the top of her lungs. Miss Tegui gave a click of her tongue and went to pick the baby up. She bounced the baby in her arms and watched Misaki as he leaned over the counter.

"I know you don't want to think about it, but things aren't about what you want anymore. You're the oldest and your brother and sister need you right now," Miss Tegui said, "Here, take the baby and go sit in the other room. I'll make some dinner. I can stay and help you put the little ones to bed tonight."

Misaki took Megumi from Miss Tegui's outstretched hands and wandered into the living area. He sat at the kotatsu and held the baby in his lap. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt, which she stuck in her mouth and sucked on. He could hear the old woman in the kitchen with Minoru.

"Help me make some dinner for your brother," she was saying.

"Mommy never lets me in the kitchen," Minoru replied.

"…need me right now," Misaki formed the words with his mouth but no sound came out. He closed his eyes and hugged Megumi to him.

…_they are your brother and sister…they need to know they can rely on you._

…

The old woman ended up doing most of the work that night. She didn't complain about it, watching Misaki out of the corner of her eye as if waiting for him to get up and run from the house. He felt too numb to move. He'd planted himself at the kotatsu and every bit of energy drained out of him. She put a bowl of food in front of him and he stared at it as though he'd forgotten what food was and what he was meant to do with it. She took the baby from him and ate her own dinner. Minoru laughed at Misaki for not eating as he picked rice out of his bowl with his fingers.

After a while, Miss Tegui had Minoru take their bowls to the kitchen, leaving Misaki with his untouched food. She followed Minoru, helping him wash the dishes. She let Minoru go upstairs to get Misaki's handheld game and he gloated loudly about playing it in front of his older brother and about how his older brother wasn't going to take it away. Eventually she put the baby and Minoru to bed and came to sit at the kotatsu with Misaki. They were both silent a long while.

"I'll tell them tomorrow that there is no one to take the little ones," Misaki finally spoke. His voice sounded dry and harsh from disuse. Miss Tegui stirred but said nothing. "They're not…I can't…I'm only twelve. Thirteen in July. What can I do?"

"You know what will happen to them?" Miss Tegui asked in a soft voice.

"They'll be taken away and I won't see them again," Misaki clenched his hands into fists in his lap, "Is that such a bad thing?"

Another stretch of silence.

"They'll be put in foster care, or a group home," Miss Tegui explained, "Families might adopt them. Megumi has the better chance. Possibly families oversea."

"They'll be taken care of."

Again, silence.

Miss Tegui stood from the table and took the bowl of untouched food, long since grown cold, from Misaki. She brought it into the kitchen and he could hear her washing the dish. She returned and went to exchange her slippers for outdoor shoes at the front entry.

"I won't be able to come tomorrow. I have errands in town. You'll have to go to that address the officer gave you alone with the little ones," she called over her shoulder. Misaki could hear the front door opening and clicking closed.

For the next hour, Misaki sat alone in the dark with only the sound of his own breathing. He turned the day over in his mind but couldn't remember anything past that morning, waking up to cold water in the face and his mother's disappointment. That's how he'd always be to her now, a disappointment. There was no way to make it up to her anymore. No more chances to do better. He laid back on the floor to stare at the ceiling. His head was spinning and he was beginning to feel nauseous from it. He closed his eyes in an effort to make it stop.

He didn't know at what point he fell asleep. He dreamed about riding in the back of a police car, his brother Minoru at the wheel wearing a uniform and laughing gleefully. His mother sat next to him, soaked in a thick, red substance that could only be blood. She kept telling him that she needed his help taking care of the little ones and asking if he would, please, go pick up his little sister from the crib. The siren of the police car wailing sounded a lot like a baby's screams until Misaki woke up and realized they really were a baby's screams.

"What a weird dream," He ran his hand over his face in annoyance and wondered why no one was looking in on Megumi, before sitting up and hitting his knees on the kotatsu. His brow wrinkled, "Why am I…" and it all came back to him like a large stone settling on his chest.

Misaki stood up and wandered down the hall to the room his mother shared with his stepfather. The door was open and he could see the crib where Megumi was crying for attention. Everything inside looked the same as normal. The bed was neatly made and there were framed pictures of the family atop a dresser. The air felt stale and there was a chill. He picked up the baby and hurried from the room, taking her to the kitchen where Minoru was already sitting in the pantry pouring dried rice out on the floor.

"What are you doing?" Misaki screamed.

"Helping breakfast," Minoru explained, tilting the rice box over and reaching for a packet of freeze-dried fish. He began tugging at it with his tiny finger, attempting to rip it open.

"No, no, no, put it down!"

For a moment Misaki ran back and forth, torn between strangling his little brother and what to do with the baby in his arms. Eventually, his brain processed the situation enough that he stuck Megumi in her high chair and grabbing Minoru by the arm. He tugged the little boy from the pantry and they both tripped over the spilled rice bin, the dried fish bag tore apart and fish flew everywhere atop them. The baby started screaming again and Minoru joined her.

"I wanna make breakfast," Minoru cried, fat tears rolling down his chubby cheeks.

"Dammit, Minoru, I'm covered in fish! What were you thinking? You can't make breakfast, you're not helping," Misaki ranted, "Get up off the floor! You're taking a bath."

"I don't wanna!" Minoru howled.

It took nearly ten minutes for Misaki to wrestle the little boy into the bathroom, grains of rice biting into his bare feet, before realizing he'd left the baby in the kitchen. He started water for the bath and retrieved the baby, but didn't know where he could put her. He set her on the floor, a blanket spread out underneath her, and went to chase Minoru down again.

"I don't want a bath! I don't want a bath!" Minoru kicked and thrashed as Misaki dragged him into the bathroom and struggled to remove his fish stained pajamas.

"Shut up," Misaki hissed, dunking the little boy into the water.

Minoru screeched, "It's too cold!" He sank his teeth into Misaki's hand and Misaki yelped, letting him go. He sprinted down the hall naked and dripping water in his wake. "I want mommy! When is mommy coming home?"

Misaki threw a rag after him and sank to the ground. His hand stung where the little boy had bit him. He rubbed away the tears forming with a fist. Megumi crawled to Misaki and placed her hands on his leg, using it to pick herself up to standing. She wobbled a moment, and fell back down to her bottom. Misaki wrinkled his nose and frowned down at her. He knew the smell meant it was time for a diaper change. As if the morning wasn't awful enough.

He got Megumi into a new diaper, gritting his teeth and ignoring the rising anxiety over Minoru's whereabouts in the house. He could hear the little boy laughing and a clatter or crash every now and then. He strapped Megumi to his back and chased Minoru down, tossing him into the bathtub. It was another fight to get him properly scrubbed off, and he was off running again before Misaki could dry him.

Back in the kitchen, Misaki put Megumi back in her chair and decided to work on cleaning up the fish first. Minoru stumbled into the kitchen, still naked, and declared, "I'm hungry."

"I don't care," Misaki grumbled.

"Make me breakfast. Mommy said Misaki has to make breakfast today. Make breakfast," Minoru complained.

Misaki clenched his jaw. He thought of Miss Tegui sitting at the kotatsu last night and his accusatory look when he said he'd hand the little ones over to the state: _what are you going to do._ What the hell could he do? He couldn't take care of them. He couldn't even take care of himself.

"When's mommy and daddy coming home? They're supposed to be home today," Minoru continued whining.

Misaki's head snapped around and he bit out, "They're never coming home. They're dead. Don't you get it. That's why the cops brought us home yesterday, idiot. Your mommy and daddy are dead and I'm not making you breakfast, so shut up."

Minoru's eyes went wide and Megumi was whimpering again. Misaki slapped a hand to his mouth, horrified by his own words.

"You're a liar," Minoru shouted, "Take it back. Liar! I hate you!"

Minoru darted for their bedroom, slamming the door shut behind him. Megumi began crying again. Misaki let the broom fall clattering to the floor and collapsed at the table, burying his head in his arms. He took a deep breath and straightened. He would make food and take the little ones to the police, hand them over, and that would be it. Whether it's a group home or adopted overseas, they'd be better off than with him. That's what he needed to do and he didn't need Miss Tegui's judgement to make everything harder than it already was. Misaki stood and made his way to the fridge, stopping when he saw the note pinned there by his mom, her instructions for while they were away on the trip: _1) Make yummy food, 2) Give Minoru his medicine, 3) Support Megumi in the bath…_

His eyes trailed down the list to the bottom, freezing on the last two instructions his mother would ever give him.

…_remind them that I love them…_

Misaki closed his eyes and took another steadying breath. His heart caught in his throat.

…_remind yourself, I love you too…_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

"Misaki…Misaki…."

Misaki's eyes fluttered open and back closed again. He sighed, noting that he was on his belly in an awkward position again. He would have a kink in his neck in the morning. He squirmed under his ratty blanket to lay on his side and peeled his eyes open. He searched out the glow of his alarm clock to read the time: 2:17 AM. Only another hour and a half before he had to wake up. The small girl by his bedside had her cheeks puffed out and her eyes wide. She was on her knees, head laid on her hands staring at him.

"Why are you awake, Megumi? Go back to bed." Misaki grumbled.

"Can't," she insisted, lowering her voice and explaining, "There are monsters. Misaki, _please_."

"Only monster in this place is you," Misaki groaned.

"I'm scared, Misaki," his sister pleaded.

Misaki sighed, shifting over and lifting the blanket up. "One of these days, you got to make it through the whole night on your own, deal?"

Megumi crawled in, tucking herself neatly under his chin. In another few seconds she was asleep, snoring in his ear. It felt like Misaki only just closed his eyes again when his alarm went off at 4:00 AM. He reached over to silence it, carefully maneuvering around the little girl tangled up in his blanket. She'd managed to take it entirely for herself, along with most of the bedroll, leaving Misaki cold and crammed against the wall on the hard tile floor.

With half-lidded eyes, Misaki climbed to his feet and headed out of their one-bedroom. On his way, he had to step over a lump of blanket on the floor that was barely recognizable as Minoru. He paused at the altar where a picture of his mother and step-father was set up.

"Morning," he greeted them, lighting a small piece of incense and bowing to them, before moving on to the kitchen.

He started a pot of rice and put a pan over the stove to begin heating then broke off some eggs into a bowl, whisking them for tamagoyaki. In the fridge was leftover pork from the night before and some steamed vegetables. He pulled out three bento boxes from the cupboard and started portioning out the pork and stamping out shapes from the steamed vegetables, arranging them neatly in the boxes. The omelets didn't take him long to make, and he boxed those as well, before moving on to breakfast. It was time to wake the little ones when he put bread in the skillet to toast. He trekked into the bedroom again.

"Minoru, Megumi, time to get up," he said, leaning over to shake his brother's shoulder.

Minoru groaned, "Five more minutes."

"_Not_ five more minutes, get ready for school," Misaki replied, nudging his brother with his toe and stumbling to his own bedroll where his little sister had bundled herself like a sushi roll in his blanket. He brushed Megumi's hair from her face, "Rise and shine, monster."

Megumi's eyes shot open and she smiled at Misaki, "I want pancakes for breakfast."

"How about sardines and toast," Misaki said, moving to the dresser to pick out her clothes.

"Pancakes shaped like dinosaurs," Megumi replied.

"Toast shaped like…bread," Misaki returned. He scowled at Minoru, still tucked in his blankets on the ground. "Seriously, Minoru, get out of bed."

"Nnnh," Minoru replied.

Megumi rolled up into a sitting position and jumped onto the lump that was her second older brother.

"Get off, brat," Minoru roared, "Misaki!"

"Megumi, get over here, you monster," Misaki said, covering a laugh. Megumi bounced on Minoru a couple times, much to Minoru's screamed protests, before rushing over to crash into Misaki's legs. She was less cooperative about changing, squirming and moving her limbs in awkward angles as Misaki attempted tugging her shirt and skirt on. Minoru sat up in his bedroll and glared at Misaki.

"I'm feeling sick," he declared.

"You're not sick," Misaki replied.

"I've definitely got a fever. Come feel my head," Minoru said.

"Fever'll be the least of your worries if you don't get out of bed," Misaki told him.

"I smell burning," Megumi announced.

"Dammit," Misaki hurried from the room to pull his toast off the stove, "Burnt one is yours, Minoru!"

"What? Why?"

"Get out of bed and get dressed in the next two minutes and I might reconsider," Misaki said, flipping the extra crisp bread out of the pan onto a plate.

It took Minoru a bit longer than two minutes to get ready, but Misaki took the burnt toast for himself anyway. He placed two plates of breakfast on the table for Megumi and Minoru to start eating, nibbling on the black toast as he cleaned the dishes he'd used. He wrapped up their lunches and was packing their bookbags while they finished eating when there came a knock at the front door.

Misaki furrowed his brow, it was never good news this early in the morning. He opened the door a crack, peeking out. A sour faced older man stood there with his nose wrinkled as though he smelled something he disliked. One might be inclined to believe it was the burnt toast if not for the fact his face always looked like that when he spoke to Misaki. He tried to peek around Misaki once the door opened, but Misaki placed his body in the way.

"Morning, Mister Subaru. What's up?" Misaki greeted, forcing a bright grin. He tried to stay on good terms with his neighbors, that way they were usually more understanding when Megumi threw a temper tantrum or Minoru caused mischief like drawing crude figures in the stairwell. Mister Subaru was prickly, though. He never quite bought the story Misaki told when they first moved in, about their father being away on business a lot.

"Yata," the old man replied tersely, "Landlady was looking for you yesterday. She says you still owe her money for last month's rent."

"Ah…right," Misaki's smile wavered only slightly, as he shuffled money around in his head. He'd used payment from his two part-time jobs the day before to cover utility bills, his part-time job that morning wouldn't cover the remaining balance on rent and he still had to pick up Minoru's medicine. He could stop by the grocer, since the owner still owed him money for a few shifts he'd worked there, but he'd been waved away the last three times he tried to collect. The only other option was the noodle restaurant on the street corner, owner might give him a shift because he liked Misaki, and maybe the tips would help combined with the morning job. He'd just have to make sure the owner let him out before it was time to pick up the little ones from school.

"She wasn't very happy when she couldn't find you. Do you have the rent or not?" Mister Subaru said, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Y-yes, I have it," Misaki hurriedly answered, flustering, "Of course I have it."

"She says if you don't get it to her by the end of the day, you need to find a new place to squat," Mister Subaru continued. His lips cracked into a facsimile of a smile. "I told her I'd pass the message on."

Misaki winced, "Why so impatient? I told her I'd get it to her!"

"Before this month's rent is due?"

"Of course…"

"Because this month's rent is due at the end of the week. Do you have this month's rent?" Mister Subaru folded his arms over his chest and raised a skeptical brow. Misaki shifted from one foot to the other. "Maybe your father should stop by and have a word with her. If he's in town. That is."

"R-right. I-I'll talk to him," Misaki stammered. He heard a crash inside the apartment, a rush of feet, slam of door, and Megumi began to wail, "Dammit! I gotta go. Have a good day, Mister Subaru."

He all but slammed the door in the old man's face, clicking the lock into place and hurrying back to the kitchen. He found a shattered plate on the floor, food splattered everywhere, his skateboard upturned against the cabinet, and Megumi in the center of it all, ketchup and egg spittle staining the front of her outfit, face twisted in desperation. She clenched and unclenched her tiny hands at her side, as she screamed for her big brother.

"MI…SAAA….KIIIII!" Her cheeks were red and she gasped for breath between syllables.

Minoru was conspicuously absent from the scene.

"It's okay, it's okay! I'm here, I'm right here. We don't need to yell," Misaki soothed, kneeling down to inspect her for injuries before sweeping her out of the mess with his hands under her arms and sitting her on the counter next to the sink. He rubbed a hand on her back and made soothing noises until her sobs subsided to a whimper. She opened her eyes and pouted at him.

"My favorite skirt is bad, now, I have to throw it away," she decided.

"What? Throw it away? Why?" Misaki gaffed, grabbing a wet cloth and wiping the food off her hands and shirt front, "It'll be fine. I just have to clean it."

"It's bad. It has to go away," she insisted.

"Fine, whatever. I'll throw it away," Misaki lied, "But later, okay. For now, let's get you into something with less egg on it and then we can kill your brother."

"Okay," Megumi agreed with an eager smile.

"Okay," Misaki grinned, touching their foreheads together. He picked her up again and carried her at arm's length from the kitchen back into the bedroom. He noted their bathroom door was closed in passing. "So that's where he's hiding. Brat."

Changing Megumi took a few minutes, she didn't have many clean outfits left. He'd have to find time and change for a laundry mat run that week. He glanced at the clock with a frown. He had no chance of getting to work on time that day. He sighed, and pounded his fist on the bathroom door.

"I didn't do it," Minoru cried from inside.

"Open the door, kid, and take your beating like a man," Misaki replied.

"I didn't do it," Minoru repeated with more ferocity.

"You can tell that to the judge. Which is me. I'm also jury and executioner," Misaki felt around the top ledge of the bathroom door frame for his emergency lockpick – a bit of twisted paperclip. He knelt in front of the door and wiggled the wire in the lock.

"I'm telling you; it wasn't me," Minoru said. Misaki pushed the door open and stood to glare down at his brother. Minoru was seated in the empty bathtub, his legs drawn up to his chest. He looked up at Misaki with a little frown. "It's no fair. Megumi never gets in trouble for anything."

"Megumi doesn't mess around on my skateboard and break shit," Misaki replied.

"You said a bad word," Minoru muttered, burying his head in his knees.

"Yeah, yeah," Misaki put his hands in his pockets and sighed, "We're running late. We can talk about it on the way to school."

"If we're late, can't we just not go?" Minoru complained.

"You know that's not how it works," Misaki rolled his eyes, "If you get out of the tub, I'll let you ride my board to school."

Minoru's eyes lit up, "Really? Will you show me how to do a trick, too?"

"No time," Misaki grabbed him by the elbow and tugged him upwards. Minoru pouted again and Misaki said, "If you clean up the mess you made when we get home and get all your homework done before seven, I'll show you a trick. One trick before bedtime. Deal?"

"Deal," Minoru hopped out of the tub.

They were ten minutes late getting out the door. Misaki snuck them around the long way to avoid Mister Subaru. He glanced into the window of the front office for any signs of their landlady before hurrying out of the complex with Megumi in his arms, yanking Minoru by the hand. Minoru's backpack bounced noisily as he hobbled along, doing his best to keep from dragging Misaki's skateboard on the ground. Once they were safely away from the apartments, Misaki put the board on the ground and held it steady while Minoru stepped onto it. Misaki repositioned the little boy's feet for him for the right balance, before taking his hand and tugging him along the street, Megumi clung around Misaki's neck like a monkey.

"Can I get a skateboard?" Minoru asked.

"No."

"Can I have yours?"

"_No_."

Megumi buried her face in her oldest brother's shoulder and heaved a heavy sigh.

"Why not?" Minoru demanded.

"Because I use it everyday to go to my jobs. It's not a toy, Minoru, I need it," Misaki explained, "Why do you want a skateboard all of a sudden?"

"It's not all of a sudden. I always wanted one. You just would've said no, so I never asked," Minoru said. His voice was on the border of a whine. Misaki patted Megumi's back, feeling her growing limp in his arms, reminding him of the little sleep he got the night before.

"And now you think my answer is going to be different?" Misaki challenged.

"I never ask for anything," Minoru began.

"You ask for, like, ten things every day," Misaki muttered.

"That's different. This is important."

"My foot it's important."

"I'm turning ten in two weeks. That's a big birthday, right?" Minoru persisted. Misaki winced. It wasn't that he'd forgotten his little brother's birthday. More like he'd forgotten what month they were in. "I'm practically an adult. I should get an adult gift. Like a skateboard."

"Listen, Minoru, I don't know if…" Misaki searched for the right way to explain that a gift of any kind probably wasn't in the cards for Minoru's birthday, let alone one as expensive as a skateboard.

"Besides, if I had a skateboard, the other kids at school would think it was cool and…and…" Minoru trailed off.

Misaki could take an unkind guess what the end of that sentence sounded like. He flashed briefly on an old memory of his own school days. He knew it had been hard for Minoru switching schools when they lost the house, like it had been hard for Misaki when his mother's new husband moved them for his job.

"I'll see what I can do, okay, but no promises," Misaki said.

"Seriously? That would be so awesome," Minoru exclaimed.

"No promises," Misaki stressed.

"I swear, if you get me this one thing, I'll be the best. I'll take my bath on time, and do all my homework every night, and I'll clean the bathroom for a month! Please, Misaki, please, please, please," Minoru pleaded.

"We're at school. For now, you mind just walking Megumi the rest of the way to her class? I have to get to work," Misaki said.

"Yeah, I can do that. Count on me!"

Misaki put Megumi on the ground and stirred her awake. She looked at him groggily. He put her backpack on and placed a kiss atop her head.

"Blame me when the teacher asks why you were late, and be good, both of you," he eyed Minoru pointedly, "I'll see you when the day's over."

"Bye, Misaki," Megumi murmured, wrapping her arms around his legs.

"Later," Minoru attempted to kick the board up into his hand, but it barely made it halfway up and slid out from under him as he stumbled backwards.

Misaki caught the board with his own foot and easily kicked it into his hand, while managing to reach out the other hand and grab Minoru by his collar, steadying the smaller boy on his feet once more. He pressed Megumi's hand into Minoru's and watched them head into the school building before dropping the board back to the ground and hopping on it. He raced down the sidewalk at a breakneck pace for his morning job.

That morning, Misaki had promised to work a few hours at the nursing home emptying bed pans and mopping the floors. He was exactly fifteen minutes late when he tried to sneak through the side-entry door. A hand with long, claw-like nails, caught hold of him by the shirt collar.

"Yata-chan," the middle-aged woman cooed, "You're late."

"I know. I know. I'm sorry. I'll put it in extra work, I promise," Misaki said, flustering and avoiding eye contact with the woman. There was something about women that made him nervous, the way their bodies curved and their voices were so soft. This particular woman favored form-fitted dresses with low necklines and flashy make-up. Her perfume made him dizzy.

"You'll put in no work. I'm over your promises and your excuses," she replied coolly, "This is the third time in two weeks that you said you would be here at a certain time and weren't. I can't rely on you."

Misaki felt a chill creeping through him, his stomach turning with sickness, "You can. Please, I'm sorry. I tried to be here on time, but things kept coming up…I'll put in an extra hour. Please, don't do this."

"No, no, honey, save the tears. You think you're the first man to let me down? I took a chance on you, because you've got that cute, little face, but this work is easy pay, and I've got plenty of people waiting to snatch it up. It took me five minutes to fill your shoes," the woman said.

"That's not…it's just…I didn't mean…" Misaki bit his lower lip and curled his hands into tight fists, letting the disappointment sear through him. He slumped his shoulders and whispered in defeat, "You've already found someone else?"

"Yes and she's already doing great work, her manner and dress are far more pleasant, she doesn't scare the patients, and she doesn't have requests for odd hours either. She says she can be here the whole day, and on call, if I need her," the woman told him, folding her arms over her chest and making a tsking noise with her tongue, "I wish it could've turned out better for you but this was never a priority to you. I need someone I can count on to be here. Someone that shows me they actually want this job."

"I…I…um…okay. I'm sorry. I…okay…thank you," Misaki bowed quickly, as he stepped back towards the exit, "Maybe…um…maybe you'll consider me…maybe in the future…"

"Maybe," the woman said, but she didn't sound convinced.

Misaki nodded and, without another word, left. He managed to hold it in until he found an ally to duck into and collapse behind the dumpster, burying his head in his knees to muffle his frustrated scream.

"How the fuck am I going to make rent now?"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Misaki made his way up the familiar footpath and stood on the porch practicing smiling for a few minutes before he knocked. The old woman that answered gave him a once over.

"What happened?"

"No…nothing happened…I…I just…" Misaki blew his breath out at once and hung his head in shame, "How do you always know?"

Miss Tegui opened the door wider to let him in. He removed his shoes and propped his skateboard at the door. The past four years had stolen a couple inches, given her a few more wrinkles, and turned her head completely white. She walked with a heavier limp that morning.

"Don't tell me. It's about to rain," Misaki muttered under his breath, following her into the living area. He plopped on the floor.

"You think you're a good liar, but the truth is, you suck at it," she told him plainly, shuffling into the kitchen to put a kettle to boil for tea. "Your mother told me that, when you were a small boy, whenever you tried to lie to her, she'd know, because you'd be bawling your eyes out."

"Whatever. Who wants to be a good liar anyway," Misaki folded his legs and slumped back on the floor. "It's not a big deal. I lost a job this morning is all."

Miss Tegui stepped back into the living area to look down at him in shock.

"Not a big deal?" she repeated, "Yata, tell me the truth, how bad is it. You know I can always make room for you and the little ones if…"

"It's not that bad," Misaki insisted. He frowned at her. "Besides, where would you make space? Your house isn't much bigger than our apartment. And for how long? What happens when your grandchildren come to stay? Seriously, Miss Tegui, stop. Don't ask again. I didn't come here for sympathy or hand-outs."

"Fine. What did you come here for, then?" Miss Tegui demanded.

"Company. Tea. Something to keep me busy," Misaki answered, giving her a pleading look. She sighed and folded her hands in front of her.

"You really should save your energy for the little ones and looking for paying work."

"I already tried looking, all my usual connections don't need help right now, and I can handle the little ones with or without energy," Misaki said. She huffed another sigh.

"The garden could use some tending…and the back gate, its latch is stuck and I don't have the strength to pry it open, if you think you could manage…"

"Right. Leave it to me," Misaki grinned, hopping to his feet.

Fixing the latch wasn't difficult, but the garden took over an hour. By then, Miss Tegui had set up a pot of tea with snacks. She'd come up with a couple more things she needed worked on, as well. It wasn't that Misaki had a particular love of chores, or handiwork. He'd found over the years that keeping busy, staying active, was therapeutic for him. It didn't give him a chance to dwell on things, and the less he sat and thought, the better.

Miss Tegui sipped her tea in silence. Misaki nibbled at his serving of milk bread and hoped she'd give him the next To-Do's soon. He could already feel a restless itching under his skin to get back to work. It didn't help being so close to the old house. He could sense it, a few doors away. He hadn't been back there since moving the little ones out. He preferred it that way. He didn't have to remember the life he'd had there before the accident. Didn't have to think about those horrible days and months after. The struggle of learning how to care for a baby and toddler on his own, of looking for work as a middle school drop-out with no experience, the dull pain of selling away all their furniture and as much of their belongings as they could part with to cover bills. Like selling away pieces of himself, until there was nothing left but the clothes on their back, the pictures of their parents, and a kotatsu. His mother and step-father had some savings, but most of it went to cover cost of funerals.

Funerals, Misaki squeezed his eyes shut, attempting to shut out the thoughts from his mind. He vaguely recalled that day, standing in the grave yard. Megumi in his arms. Minoru attached to his hip. People stopped to give their condolences to the pitiful orphans and were never seen or heard from again. Only Miss Tegui had stuck around to help in what little ways she could. She didn't have much money and her home was small. Not that Misaki would ask or want anything if she could offer it. He'd made the decision to keep the family together and support the children, and it was his responsibility. He couldn't put any of that burden on to anyone else, no matter how willing.

"Was there anything else you wanted me to work on?" Misaki said, putting the rest of his milk bread down.

"You don't have time, do you? You're working lunch shift at the restaurant, right? Finish your tea and snacks. You should leave soon if you want to make it on time," Miss Tegui replied. She put her cup of tea down and stood. "I'll pack some things for the little ones to eat. I picked up some fresh dumplings earlier today. I have a friend coming to visit for lunch, but my eyes were too big, I picked out far more than we can eat on our own."

"Really, Miss Tegui, I couldn't," Misaki insisted. The old woman waved him away.

"If you can't accept them, just don't eat them. Give them all to the little ones. You can take a gift for them, can't you?"

"Oh, yeah, right. Thanks Miss Tegui."

Misaki slumped over the table. His mind was back on money problems. Minoru's birthday in two weeks, and he promised to try getting the boy something special. He wondered how many part-time jobs he'd have to work to be able to afford a new skateboard. He knew it didn't feel fair to the younger boy, but Misaki's skateboard had been a Christmas gift from their mother the last Christmas they were a whole family. He didn't hold on to it for sentimental reasons though, it was his only means of transportation.

Misaki finished his tea, and took the package of snacks Miss Tegui wrapped for the children. She followed him to the door and waited as he exchanged house slippers for his sneakers.

"The weather is going to start getting colder soon. Do you have warm jackets for the little ones," Miss Tegui asked.

"Of course," Misaki grabbed his skateboard.

"Do you have warm clothes for yourself?" she eyed him knowingly.

"I'll be fine. You worry too much. I'll paint that back wall next time I come by. It's getting worn. Thanks for the tea," he told her. He left before she could ask any more prying questions, feeling as though a weight was lifting from his shoulders the farther he moved away from that neighborhood.

…

Misaki was pretty good at waiting tables. He was quick and could manage multiple tasks at once easily. His memory seemed to work best when it came to food and he never forgot an order. If he did make mistakes, customers were often more forgiving of him, because they thought he was younger than his actual age. He made a bit better tips than the other wait staff, because customers found his small stature and energetic personality cute. While he didn't typically like being thought of as cute, he didn't mind it as much when money was involved.

"If you stayed for dinner service, you could make three times that much," one of the full-time waiters, Riho, said, nodding at Misaki's bundle of tips.

"Is the money really that much better?" he wondered, slipping his apron off and hanging it in the back kitchen. The cooks were prepping food for dinner. Misaki had a few minutes before he needed to leave for his siblings.

"More people. More alcohol too. Drunk tips better than sober. Not to mention, you're so small and you've got an appealing face. Men and women both like you, also you bring in all the shotacons, we always have more customers when you're here. You'd make a lot of money, for sure," the waiter continued.

Misaki frowned, turning the thought over in his mind, and pushing down the frustration at being called small and cute again. If he could make that much money in one night, he'd definitely have enough to cover the rent and part of next month's rent too. That would get the landlady off his back. Then maybe he could use some money from his part-time job in the morning to get Minoru a gift. He still wouldn't be able to afford the skateboard, but maybe there was something cheaper that the kids in school would be impressed by.

"What am I thinking," Misaki mumbled to himself.

There was no way he could work a dinner shift. There was no way he could leave Minoru and Megumi alone for that long.

Could he?

Minoru was excited that morning about turning ten and becoming an "adult". Maybe ten was old enough to watch Megumi for a couple hours. Misaki tried to remember how old he was when his mother started leaving him alone. It was no use, he couldn't recall. Maybe, if he made the little ones dinner early, got them their baths, and all Minoru had to do was make sure they brushed their teeth and went to bed on time.

Misaki found the owner in the backroom.

"Would it be okay if I came back for dinner shift?"

"Dinner shift, huh?" the owner wrinkled his brow, "You've never been available for dinner shift before."

"Just tonight. I think I could," Misaki said, pushing a smile on his face and trying to look like a responsible person. It was hard to do with holes in his shirt and a cowlick on the side of his head that he couldn't tame that morning no matter how much he wet it down.

"It would be a lot of help. Can you be back by five?"

"Five?" Misaki hesitated. It was going to be tight, but he was sure he could make it.

"Is that a problem?"

"Ah, no, no," Misaki ran a hand over the back of his head, "Five is good. I'll be back at five. Thank you so much!"

Getting Megumi from her class was quick and easy, but they ended up waiting nearly ten minutes for Minoru to show up. Misaki felt uncomfortable with the stares passing students gave him, and two teachers mistook him for a student, scolding him for being out of uniform, loitering around, and having his skateboard.

"I'm seventeen, dammit. I'm not even a student anywhere," he snapped at the second teacher, "I'm just here picking up my siblings."

"You said a bad word," Megumi mumbled into Misaki's shoulder unhelpfully.

"Wait off property, then, your manner is scaring the children," the teacher huffed and disappeared into the crowd. Minoru chose that moment to appear.

"Where the hell have you been?" Misaki demanded, and then noticed that the boy was dragging his bookbag at his side, both of the straps were dangling at an odd angle, "And what the hell happened to your bag?"

"Nothing happened. Why are you always yelling?" Minoru replied. His cheek was red and he had a scrape on his chin.

"Ugh…you've been fighting again? You're unbelievable!" Misaki took a deep breath, as the words _three times as much money_ echoed between his ears. "Never mind. Forget it. We don't have time. Hurry up, we're going home."

Misaki grabbed his little brother by the neck and pushed him forward. They hurried along the sidewalk, Misaki ensuring they move at a brisk pace.

"Why are we in such a rush, anyways?" Minoru demanded, struggling to keep up as Misaki yanked at his arm.

"I-I-uh…I got a job tonight. I need to be there at five," he explained.

"You're going to work? But we had a deal, Misaki," Minoru whined, dragging everyone to a halt.

"Deal?" Misaki wrinkled his brow.

"You forgot. You always forget," Minoru cried, "You said you'd teach me a new skateboard trick. You promised."

"Oh that…" Misaki winced, "I don't remember promising anything…"

"You said you would do it if I clean the mess up and do my homework," Minoru folded his arms over his chest and pouted up at Misaki.

"Yeah…well, you haven't exactly held up your end of the bargain yet anyways," Misaki replied.

"That means I don't have to clean anything or do my homework," Minoru said.

"Not what it means. You still have to clean your mess," Misaki groaned, ducking his head sheepishly, he quickly added, "And watch your sister tonight, put her to bed, while I go to work."

"That's no fair, Misaki! You don't have to keep your end of the deal, but I still have to keep mine and babysit Megumi too? That's crap!"

"Hey, don't use that kind of language!"

"You use bad words all the time!"

"Dammit, Minoru," Misaki seethed, rubbing his forehead in frustration, "Listen, okay, I'll show you later. Please, can we get moving. I've only got so much time. This is important."

"Everything is always more important than me," Minoru grumbled, shoving his hands in his pockets and allowing himself to be dragged by the shoulders towards home.

When they got into the apartment, Minoru beelined for the bedroom. Misaki put Megumi down to start dinner when he realized the mess still on the floor from the morning. Including the broken plate that Megumi was heading towards.

"Shit," Misaki picked Megumi up again, "Minoru, get out here and clean this mess."

"No! You clean it!" Minoru shouted back.

Misaki knew if he didn't make sure it was cleaned before he left, Minoru was just stubborn enough to leave the mess the entire night. He couldn't leave Megumi wandering the apartment with broken glass and he didn't have time to argue with Minoru about it. He sighed, set Megumi on the counter.

"Want to play the guessing game, monster?" Misaki said to her in a false cheery voice.

"Yeah," Megumi grinned. It was her favorite game and an easy way to keep her still and focused on him.

"You have to give me a clue when you're ready," Misaki told her. He rolled up his sleeves and retrieved the broom from the closet, carefully stepping around the broken glass.

"Pink," Megumi said.

"That's not a clue. That's a color," Misaki complained, pouting comically at her, "Can't I have another." She shook her head, slapping a hand to her mouth and smiling behind it. "Okay, okay. Are you thinking of…a flower?"

Megumi shook her head. She held her hand up and waggled her fingers, dropping her thumb to indicate that he had four more guess left. Misaki started sweeping up the glass and dried food bits, making a show of thinking about his next guess.

"How about…a piece of candy," Misaki said. She giggled and shook her head, another finger went down. He scooped up the glass, and tossed it in the waste bin. He pulled out a rag from under the counter and got it wet. He wrinkled his nose as he thought about it. "Is it a fish?"

"Nope," Megumi kicked her legs happily and wiggling her fingers, held in a V-shape, "You only got this many left, Misaki."

Misaki knelt on the floor, scrubbing the dried on egg bits and ketchup, as he thought about his next answer. "Can I have another clue?"

"Mmm…" Megumi tapped her tiny finger to her chin. "Sparkles."

"Pink…sparkles…" Misaki made a face, biting his tongue on how stupidly girly it all sounded. "What could you possibly be thinking of…"

"Can't say," Megumi smirked.

"Maybe…are you thinking about…shoes?" Misaki said weakly.

"One more," Megumi announced. Misaki sighed, finishing up the floor. He stood and tossed the rag into the sink and ran water over it.

"I don't know, Megumi. Is it pancakes?"

"Nope," Megumi laughed giddily, "I was thinking about a princess riding in a carriage, like Cinderella, with four horses and she had ribbons in her hair."

"Oh…that's…" Misaki frowned, picking her up and setting her on the floor, "I never would've guessed that."

"I know," she said, matter-of-fact.

"Right, monster. You win. So what do you want for dinner?" Misaki knelt down to eye-level with her.

"Pancakes," Megumi declared proudly.

Misaki rolled his eyes, "I guessed that one, at least." He rummaged through the pantry for ingredients, mumbling to himself, "I don't think we have milk…maybe I can use water…"

Dinner didn't take too long to make. Misaki glanced at the clock as he dripped batter into the skillet. He just needed to get the kids into the bath and then he could take off. He set a plate of the pancakes on the table and Megumi eagerly snatched one up.

"Minoru, dinner," Misaki called. It was a few minutes later that the little boy shuffled out of the room. He didn't look at Misaki when he sat down and frowned at the table.

"Pancakes," Minoru scowled, "How is this dinner?"

"After dinner, take a bath with Megumi," Misaki instructed, ignoring his little brother's complaints.

"Why do I have to? I'm a man, I should be able to take a bath alone," Minoru said, "Why don't you take a bath with Megumi?"

"Man or not, no one in this house gets to take a bath alone. We can't afford the water or the heat," Misaki retorted, darting a nervous look at the clock. He really didn't understand why he had to explain all of this to Minoru. Most nights they all shared a bath, "We're not having this argument anymore. I'll be leaving before you get out of the bath. Do your homework and go to bed on time. If anything happens, I'm just at the restaurant on the corner."

Minoru grumbled more under his breath but didn't say anymore. When he finished eating, he grabbed Megumi's hand and took her to take their bath. Misaki cleared the table and washed the dishes. He called to the children that he was leaving, and stepped out into the night. It was already starting to get chilly out. He'd lied to Miss Tegui about having cold weather clothes for himself. He'd given Minoru his old sweaters, when Minoru had outgrown his own, and was never able to replace them. He wasn't sure what he would do when the temperatures really began to drop.

"I just need to focus on getting rent paid this month," he reminded himself. A hopeful part of him realized that if things worked out like this, maybe he could start leaving Minoru and Megumi more and pick up some late shifts.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N**: I don't know why I continue to post here. Very few readers, no reviews. I won't be posting anymore of this story here. Thank you for reading this far.

**Edit A/N**: Just wanted to add, for those few readers that are here and want to see how this ends. I will continue to post it on AO3, my username is the same: afinepricklypear. It's just easier for me to post on one site, and since I'm getting interaction there and nothing here, and also, this site has gotten really bad with spam PMs and advertisements, that's why I'm discontinuing here.

* * *

Chapter 5:

Riho hadn't been lying about dinner tips. After only an hour and a half, Misaki had more than doubled his tips from the lunch shift. He waved to a couple that he'd finished serving, thanking them for their patronage, and eagerly swept up the money they left him into his apron. He went to the bar counter for a short breather, counting the yen in his pocket as relief spread through his chest. Even if he left now, he'd have the money to cover his balance for last month's rent. That meant everything he made from here on out could go towards next month's rent. He thought, excitedly, that if things kept going like they were, he'd have next month's rent in no time.

A hand touched Misaki's backside and he nearly jumped out of his skin as an older man in tan colored suit leaned against the counter next to him. The guy was in his mid-thirties, maybe, and attractive with dark colored hair and light eyes.

"You're new," the man said, hand holding Misaki in place. He smelled of tobacco and peppermint, "I haven't seen you before."

Misaki flustered. He tried to keep his voice even as he replied, "Yeah…uh…sort of. I work part-time in the day, a lot. This is my first night working dinner."

"What a shame. I come here every week for dinner. Service is good, but it would be better to come from someone with your cute face," the man continued.

Misaki curled his hand into a fist at his side, bit back the rude remark bubbling its way up inside of him. This was the third time that day he'd been reminded of his short stature and less than masculine features. The guy was weird, and Misaki didn't understand the handsy behavior, but he had to focus, there were still three and a half more hours in dinner shift. It would be a lot of money he'd be throwing away, not to mention future part time work at the noodle shop, if he lost his temper now. He squirmed against the older man's hold.

"I should get back to work," he forced a smile, "Need to continue the good service here for everyone."

"But you haven't taken my order," the man said, slipping his hand to Misaki's hip, arm firm around his waist. Misaki stumbled back from the grip in shock, nearly tumbling over, but the man's reflexes were excellent. He caught hold of Misaki and drew the smaller framed boy to his chest. "Clumsy, aren't you?"

"I-i-it's not my section," Misaki stammered, heat flooding his cheeks as he slowly processed their positioning and the number of eyes on the two of them.

"I wonder if you could be this clumsy and cute in a Lolita dress…lace and red ribbons would look amazing with these eyes of yours," the man mused, his face close enough that Misaki could smell the alcohol warm on his breath. That was the final straw.

"I'm a guy, why the hell would I wear something like that?" Misaki demanded. His next words caught in his throat and all of his blood rushed straight to his head when the older man's hand slipped down to caress Misaki's butt cheek.

Before Misaki could stop himself, the older man was nearly collapsed to his knees, gripping the bar for support with one hand, his other hand cradling the blossoming bruise on his lower jaw where Misaki's fist had connected. Several of the customers were making gasping noises and whispering about the commotion. Misaki was ready to move in for the kill, but a couple of the waiters stepped between them. He was dragged into the back where the owner was waiting.

"I gave you a chance tonight and this is how you repay me?" the owner hissed, jabbing a finger at Misaki's chest, "You can't attack customers like that!"

"It's not my fault! That creep was saying weird things and putting his hands…his hands were…he was touching…" Misaki's hands curled into tight fists, heart pounding erratically in his chest. Things were just starting to go well and now he was about to lose another job that day.

"I don't care. Even if he took you out back and bent you over, you would do it with a smile and thank him for coming," the owner said.

"Wait…what? No way would I ever…" Misaki shook with his anger. How could the owner even suggest he do such a thing?

"Shut up! Do you have any idea who that man even is?"

Misaki faltered, looking between the owner and the two waiters that had dragged him into the back. He finally registered the fear in their eyes.

"I…" he rubbed his arm and wrinkled his brow.

"He's the eldest son of a Yakuza boss," the owner explained, running a hand over the back of his neck. "You need to go out there and apologize."

"…but his hands were…" Misaki bit his lower lip, tears of frustration forming in his eyes. "I didn't know."

"Go to him and apologize. Beg for his forgiveness and if he asks for anything in repayment, anything at all, do it," the owner instructed.

Misaki scowled, a bitter taste in his mouth at the thought of having to grovel to that bastard. But the Yakuza might retaliate against the noodle shop for his actions, and after all that the owner had done for him - always giving him shifts when he asked, sometimes letting him take extra ingredients home – he couldn't let someone else take responsibility. The owner was counting on him to make this right. Besides, if he could fix this, the owner might not fire him.

Misaki nodded and whispered, "Okay."

The older man was brooding in a private room with a few other well-dressed men of the same age, scantily clad women climbing all over them. Misaki flustered at the sight of the ladies, dropping his eyes to the floor, his cheeks bright red.

"We don't need anything else at the moment," one of the other men said.

"I'm not here for that," Misaki fidgeted with the cloth of his apron.

"Oh, it's you," the Yakuza's son sounded mildly interested.

"Huh? What…is this the guy that punched you, Tatsuo? He's so tiny. Looks like he could be twelve. Are you even old enough to work here?" another of the men laughed.

The Yakuza's son, Tatsuo, snatched up a sake glass from the table and shattered it against the man's forehead. Misaki flinched, all the hair on his body standing on end, his senses screaming at him to run. The others in the room froze and the attacked man wobbled, placing both hands on the table to steady himself.

"Everyone out," Tatsuo roared, pointing his finger at Misaki, "Except you."

The people hurried from the room as Misaki stood paralyzed in his spot. They closed the door behind them, effectively shutting him in with the older man. Tatsuo leaned back in his seat, propping his elbows back on the top of the booth seat. He surveyed Misaki with appraising eyes, and Misaki almost felt naked under the seething gaze.

"I'm disappointed. Maybe you're not so cute as I thought, after all," Tatsuo said lazily. "They told you who my father is?"

Misaki nodded slowly. He took a subconscious step back. Tatsuo barked out a laugh. He leaned forward and ran a finger along his own jawline where the skin was beginning to discolor from the impact of Misaki's fist.

"And now you're here to ask for my forgiveness, right?"

Swallowing down his emotions and pride, Misaki lowered his head, bent at the waist and squeezed his eyes shut, "I acted without thinking. It was my mistake, no one else's. I'll take responsibility for it. Please accept my apology."

"Will you now? Your actions have injured my pride. Pride is everything to a man," Tatsuo drummed his fingers, watching Misaki from the corner of his gaze.

Pride. The world had taken everything from Misaki but he'd thought he at least had that much left. Now he stood groveling before a man that had groped him, and wondered.

"I…I know. Please, whatever I can do to make it up to you," Misaki stammered, the words sticking in his throat. A twisted smile curled on Tatsuo's face. By now, anything that had seemed attractive about his features had been perverted into something monstrous.

"Whatever, huh? I wonder, how much are you willing to _do_ for my forgiveness?" Tatsuo said, tongue trailing across his upper lip.

"I'll do anything," Misaki stiffly replied. His heart was pounding in his ears again, his stomach curling into knots.

"Anything? Do you know how dangerous an offer that is? I could ask to chop off a body part, or allow me to torture you for hours," Tatsuo continued to grin at Misaki like the cat that caught the mouse. All of the color drained from Misaki's features. He backed up again, hitting the door with his shoulders. Tatsuo covered a laugh, his hand coming down to trace a thumb along the brim of his trousers, fingers folding suggestively around the bulge in his pants, "What if I asked you to get on your knees and suck me off?"

Misaki's eyes had followed the motions of that man's hand but at Tatsuo's suggestive words, he flicked his gaze away and swallowed hard. Tatsuo's eyes were drinking in Misaki's every reaction.

"Is my forgiveness important enough to you, that you would do such a thing? How far would you go from there? If I told you to take off your clothes and touch yourself as I watch. Would you do that?" Tatsuo stood and crossed the room, pulling Misaki's face up by the chin and trailing his thumb over Misaki's bottom lip, "Would you climb on my dick and let me rape you?"

Misaki stared at him, horrified. Tatsuo laughed again.

"You could've left here when you learned who I was, run away and not come back. I don't know your name, I'd never find you. I don't have that kind of time to waste searching for an impudent brat. And this is just a part-time job, nothing to you. What are you? A middle schooler? What difference would it make if you lost this job? So, you're out some spending cash until you find another one," Tatsuo taunted, "But instead you came in here ready to endure what I asked for my forgiveness? Why is that?"

"Is it any of your business?" Misaki replied.

Tatsuo grabbed Misaki by the throat, pulling him up and forward so their noses were nearly touching. Instinctively, Misaki brought an arm up to press against Tatsuo, attempting to maintain some distance between them. His other hand was clawing at the fingers wrapped around his neck in an attempt to loosen their hold.

"Yes. Because until I forgive you, you belong to me," Tatsuo said.

Misaki struggled against the older man a moment. His closed his eyes and took a few calming breaths.

"It's not nothing," tears streamed down Misaki's cheeks now, "It's not spending cash. I need it. I need the money."

Tatsuo roared out another laugh, tossing Misaki further in the room by his neck. Misaki caught himself against the bench, grimacing as Tatsuo came up behind him, pulling his head up by the hair and locking his arm behind his back. Tatsuo used the full weight of his body to hold Misaki firm in place, legs straddling him on either side, grinding the hard bulge in his groin against Misaki's buttocks.

"So you're the kind of person that would do anything for money?"

"N-no, no," Misaki stammered, a couple frustrated tears tumbling off his chin to the tops of his hands where they gripped the booth for support.

"That's a good expression on you. Maybe you are cute after all," Tatsuo teased.

Misaki gasped, eyes widening, at a sudden warm dampness across the back of his neck, the rough texture of Tatsuo's tongue sending a strange mix of emotions shivering down his spine. He pushed back the urge to fight, recalling the feeling of losing his part-time job that morning, the fear of not knowing how he'd pay rent. He tried to focus on his brother and sister. If he could get through this moment without making a bigger mess of things, he could pay rent that month and get Minoru a nice birthday gift. Even if it meant…the color flooded Misaki's cheeks again.

Could he really do _that_ though?

_Pride is everything to a man_.

If Misaki allowed that to happen to himself, could he even continue thinking of himself as a man?

Tatsuo released Misaki and, without the pressure holding him up, Misaki slipped to his knees on the ground. His limbs felt strangely weak.

"Lucky for you, I'm not the type that pays for sex. I much prefer a partner that's honestly begging me to cum inside them. As incredible a sight that you are, on your knees, blushing and panting like that with those tears in your eyes…really does turn me on," Tatsuo said. He pulled his PDA from his breast pocket and knelt to eye-level with Misaki, holding it out for Misaki to see its screen, filled with the image of a white Lolita-style dress with red ribbons, lace, frills, puffy sleeves and a heart shaped cut out in the center of the breast. "It suits you, doesn't it?"

"What?" Misaki murmured, trying to get a grip on the change in Tatsuo's demeanor. The creep was back on the subject of clothes. Misaki was getting dizzy trying to keep up with him.

Tatsuo swiped to another picture of a sailor style schoolgirl uniform. He held it up beside Misaki, as though considering the combination, clicked his tongue and scrolled through a couple more images, and holding up another for Misaki to see. This picture was of a kimono with gold and pink patterns in the silk.

"This one too. On you, it would come up to here," Tatsuo's finger trailed up Misaki's thigh, stopping halfway, "I think. Would have to see you in it to be sure. If that's the case, we can get it tailored, pull up the hemline more."

Misaki pushed his hand away. "What are you going on about? I'm not wearing any of that crap."

"Five Hundred Thousand."

"Five hundred thousand…what? I don't understand? What are you saying?" Misaki's brow pulled together in confusion. He wanted to leave that room and get back to work. If Tatsuo was going to "forgive" Misaki, he needed to get on with it. Misaki was missing out on tips dealing with this guy. He wondered how much time he still had left on the shift.

"Two-hour photo shoot. I pick the outfits and the poses. You get Five Hundred Thousand Yen," Tatsuo explained, standing up and tucking his PDA back in his jacket. He put his hands in his pockets and smiled down at Misaki.

Misaki stared up at him with wide eyes, mouth agape. It was a lot of money for two hours. But what would the real cost be?

"Is this what I have to do for your 'forgiveness'?" Misaki asked bitterly.

Tatsuo was silent a moment, looking thoughtfully at Misaki.

"Everyone is always afraid when they learn who my father is, scared to slight me in any way out of fear of what he'll do to them. But my father hasn't gained his success by going on a killing spree every time some bitch slaps his son," Tatsuo said in a bemused tone.

Misaki groaned, "So you're saying it wasn't even necessary for me to come in here?"

"That's for you to decide. I'm talking business now," Tatsuo smirked, "The photo shoot. Be one of my models. My gallery is highly exclusive, and I sell only to a handful of private collectors. Five hundred thousand yen is a lot of money, right? I bet you don't even make that much in a week."

Misaki moved his head back and forth once. He carefully picked himself off the ground but stayed against the booth. His body tense and ready to run for the exit.

"And that's only for a first photo shoot. If your pictures are popular, I pay more for a second, then third, and fourth, as many as you want so long as the pictures sell well," Tatsuo tipped his head to one side, "If you're willing to go farther, pose with other models doing explicit things, I could arrange it and the pay is even better."

He was leering at Misaki again, in a way that made Misaki feel warm and sick throughout.

"I have a feeling you'd be popular," Tatsuo stepped forward, tracing his finger along the side of Misaki's cheek, "Especially if you let other models _do_ _things _to you. Put _things_ inside you. Inside this rude mouth of yours. Inside that sweet little ass, you've got. You'd be a best seller. The expressions you make, everything about you perfectly cute, in the right clothes and make-up. I'm good at judging which models will be most successful. You'd be number one in no time."

Misaki pulled back, attempting to compose himself. He didn't want to think about what kinds of 'things' this guy wanted to put inside him, and he certainly didn't want to dwell on why his ass was a prospective place to put said 'things'. He would definitely be fired if he attacked this guy again.

"If I don't need to apologize anymore, I'm done here. I'm going back to work," Misaki declared. He started for the door, and Tatsuo grabbed hold of his wrist. Misaki turned around, protesting, "Let go. You said…"

Tatsuo held out a slip of paper between two fingers, he set it on Misaki's bottom lip, "My business card. Call me when you've had the chance to fully consider my offer."

Misaki scowled, grabbed the card and shoved it in his apron. He stormed from the room into the back office again where the owner waited.

"It's done. He said his dad's not going to do anything. Can I go back to work?"

"Really? That's good. Good. Hm? No, no. Go home, Yata. I don't need you anymore for tonight. I have Shinichi and Chiharu covering your section," the owner said.

"I don't understand." Misaki felt the tears welling up again. Nothing could go right today. "I did…I did everything that you asked. I went and apologized. I groveled and did whatever he wanted without complaint. He forgave me. Isn't it okay now?"

"After the scene you made, I can't just let you go back out there. I have other customers to think about," the owner explained. There wasn't any malice or anger in his words, but Misaki couldn't register that over the disappointed ache in his chest.

"Am I fired then?"

The owner frowned, and sighed, looking away, "I like you, Yata. You work hard and you bring in a lot of customers. I know it doesn't seem fair, that man can come in here and do as he pleases. Listen, just don't come by for a little while. Give the customers a chance to cool off, forget what happened. Come back in…a month, maybe? And we'll see if I can put you on a lunch shift."

Misaki nodded, and rubbed a hand across his face. He wasn't fired, at least. There was a possibility for more work in the future. A month was a long time though. That made two part-time jobs in one day that he couldn't rely on for money. At least he'd made enough that night to pay off the rest of last month's rent. He had until the end of the week to figure out what to do for that month. He shuffled to the back of the restaurant, emptied the apron pocket into his trouser pockets, and left. The chilly air nipped at his bare arms. Winter was coming in fast. He'd have to make sure Megumi and Minoru's warm weather clothes still fit and figure out how to get them new jackets if not. He headed back for home, ready to slide into bed and try again tomorrow.


End file.
